Zach Lederer Loses Battle With Brain Cancer

Zach Lederer Loses Battle With Brain Cancer

Zach Lederer, 20, the former student manager for the Maryland Terrapins whose photo flexing on a hospital became a worldwide inspiration for cancer patients, died Tuesday after a long battle with brain cancer, according to the University of Maryland Athletic Department.

His 'Zaching' pose became an inspiration to people all over country who were going through a similar battle. The picture, taken by his father, shows him flexing his muscles right after having surgery at Johns Hopkins.

"My one thought is that when I'm coming out of surgery, I hope nobody's worried about me," Lederer told WBAL-TV. "The first thing I did was tell my dad to take a picture of me."

That picture quickly went viral, and, suddenly, there were pictures of others 'Zaching' to show their support.

"In my mind, there was only one thing I wanted to get across, that if you were at all worried about whether Zachary Lederer was going to be okay, coming out of surgery, I was going to feel okay and I feel great."

WBAL's Pete Gilbert interviewed him and called him someone who he'll never forget.

"It struck a chord with people," he said. "Everyone who saw the story knew that this would give him a lot of support."

The University of Maryland carried out a candlelight vigil last night Zach.